“This is the most rational @*#damn thing I’ve seen in my entire life” AKA An open letter to my friends not so sure about OCCUPY

My friends, if any of you are still out there who may feel threatened by the OCCUPY movement, or who are simply hedging— not sure how to engage, I urge you to dig deeper. I am confident that when you do, you will find your vision, your beliefs and your values echoed back to you. You will educate yourself and then educate those around you. And then you will activate for the betterment of our children and children’s children.

OCCUPY is not against making money. It is not against the skilled professionals or business entrepreneurs in your neighborhood making over 6 figures or even a million dollars. Hear me out. It is not against the RIGHT nor of the LEFT. It is far bigger than that. OCCUPY is not against anything, it is for something.

For me, it’s for a world where justice is served fairly and an economic system that rewards hard work over moving money. It’s about taking a stand for transparency and true fairness in our political and economic system. I choose to focus on the elements we associate with the OCCUPY movement that we can agree on: the corruption in the financial system and the extraction of our money has to end. I don’t get sidetracked or distracted by the extreme drama, I get engaged by the vision of a world where improving lives is valued more than moving money around. I don’t get tricked or seduced by name calling, I just know that we are all going to be better off when the rules of finance are clear and enforced and when our government is “of the people, for the people and by the people”.

Watch the video on the left of Dylan Ratigan, at Occupy Wall Street on October 16, 2011. I did my best to transcribe what I consider some of the best articulation I have heard of how to relate to the OCCUPY movement.

TRANSCRIPTION [I skip some areas, starting points are indicated. Don’t sleep on the fact that he’s doing this on the spot.] :

One thing on the old structure,
the old structure was built I believe (between 1900 and 2000),
with many very good intentions.
The world has changed,
and the rate of change in the world
is faster than it’s ever been.
And that is highly disruptive to incumbent businesses:
Banking, Energy, the Health process, Education, etc.
The ability to provide
Learning, Health, Investment, Efficiency,
by the people here and around the world
has taken a quantum leap.
We can get much more for much less.
But the fact of the matter is, doing that betrays the profitability of legacy interests that are gatekeepers–
banking gatekeepers, energy gatekeepers, health gatekeepers…

And the gatekeeper business has been obliterated by the internet.
And so the barkeeper business are paying our politicians
to preserve their gatekeeper status at all of our expense.
And the reality is
that we have to understand
that only if we approach those in power with courage and resolve:
“This is what we are doing, this is over”

But at the same time, with empathy and compassion–
like you would an alcoholic, where you are telling them they’ll no longer be able to drink.
…
…[don’t demonize individuals]
…[nelson mandela]
…[3:20]
We are at that moment where
we are either going to harness our collective agreement:
“That we have a bought government,”
and that is the issue for this election.
Period.
OR
We will fall into the traditional splintering
that will allow the status quo to perpetuate its power
making people who look different or do different jobs
fight with each other over who’s right,
and that’s a lost fight.

…[deepak]

[4:05 Intention]:
What kind of a world do I want to live in?
And what am i going to do to manifest that world
with intent.

Our egos get lost in outcomes,
We’re like, “they should do my idea… they should do this idea”.
Listen I went on MSNBC for three years, I was like “If these people would just listen to me, we could fix the whole thing.”
Everybody thinks that!
It’s a waste of energy.

Until we get principles and goals in place
we are arguing about ideas on a sinking ship.
And I don’t want to do that.

…
[4:45]
This is the most rational Goddamn thing I’ve seen in my entire life
…
[5:00]
This movement, as I see it,
has the opportunity to transcend politics,
to reach out and include Tea Partiers,
to include the (Roots) strikers up in Boston,
to include all sorts of people,
to include the cops outside this square.
So that we are on an aligned principle.
Einstein said,
“You cannot solve a problem with the same consciousness
that created the problem.”
It’s only if we manifest whatever the next tick up in consciousness is.
The consciousness has been “us vs. them”– since the 1960’s.
We are at a moment were it’s just us.
And the “us” is one enormous group of people– not on this square but on this planet and in this country.

All of us are Tea Partiers on some level.
All of us are OCCUPIERS.
All of us are that intention which is the frustration
with a world that lacks fairness.
…
[gratitude]
[ratigan self affirmation- look yourself in the eyes for “sparkle of clarity” ;)]
…
[7:45]
Ego says: “I’m right and you’re wrong”
Ego says: “I’m us you’re them.”
Principle says: “We Are.”
Respect all of us and I will respect you.”
…
[this has been going on forever]
…
[8:20]
For the first time in the history of human existence,
we have the ability to connect
through this unified field
that is the digital universe.

And as a result,
there is so much more shared information
that the capacity for the unspoken masses
to represent themselves
through digital waves
is without precedent.

The question is:
Will those waves spill in a way that is self destructive with rage?
OR
Will those waves be harnessed in a way that actually alters the ecosystem.

[8:55]
Remember,
people don’t create results
ecosystems create results,
(environments).
There’s thousands of variables happening at the same time
that create every outcome
everybody wants to get in there–
myself included, i can feel it in my own head–
“I’ll just give them a list- if they do my list, we’ll be fine”
That’s wrong.
Not because your list is wrong,
but because you don’t know everything else that exists that you don’t know.
And you have to have the humility to understand that there things that constantly are manifesting and existing that you simply don’t understand or know
because NOBODY DOES.
That’s what the unified field is!
Once you can accept that
and learn how to relate to the unified field,
which is through intention, not through outcome,
It’s through that unified intent, that is here, and everywhere else,
that ultimately this problem will resolve itself.

That thing that people don’t realize is that
The change is already done.
Now it’s just a period of time where that change will manifest itself.
…The horses have left the barn so to speak.
…
[whales were electricity]
[10:28]
Then we invented electricity.

If we had the government structure we have now,
the whale blubber oil guys would have paid off the government
to make sure electricity never happened.

That’s what we have to solve.
That’s why these people are here,
That’s why the Tea Partiers are here.
…
[10:53]
The identities and ideas are the weapon of the power structure
because when they invest you in your identity and your idea,
they bring out your ego and it creates the (brawl).
Our weapon is our intention,
and our ability align around principle.
And accept that we do not know but that we also
do know.

Our principle is that of fairness.
Our values are that of shared visibility, integrity, choice on a path that leads to alignment.

And that is the only thing I actually feel like I know.
…
[11:28 continues]
…
****
I think it’s so honorable for Dylan to thank everyone around for TRUSTING him with his time.

My friends, I humbly thank you for reading this and listening.
And mostly I’m thankful for you sharing your own VISION and intention.
Not “how we get there”, but “what it looks like”.
And then, let go of your own personal prediction, from your imagination, of the outcome.

What is your vision?
What do you want to see in the world?
How do your values and principles look when manifested in real life, among each other, among your neighbors, between far away people on an ever shrinking globe?